Trusting and Praising God

Praise God from whom all blessings flow!!! 29 weeks, 11 to go ~ this pregnancy seems to have flown by! Ever since we learned about the markers found on Landon's ultrasound to indicate complications, we have not stopped praying for God to heal him. My doctor did tell me that the technician was not 100% sure about the 2-cord umbilical vessel, so we decided to pray that she would prove wrong in that. It is something that we determined to trust God in no matter what the outcome. We laid it in His hands and we didn't worry or fret over Landon's health, or the complications that might arise. Last week I had another ultrasound and was informed that the bright spot on his heart had completely disappeared! Not only that, but they were also able to see a normal, 3-cord umbilical vessel this time! Whether the technician got it wrong to begin with or God decided to heal him miraculously, we don't know. But either way, it is a miracle. Lesson learned: trust God IN ALL THINGS no matter what. 

We also have been praising God for our sweet little Bella, as we fondly call Ellie. She is such a joy and a delight to us! She has grown up so much this year and it amazes us to no end the conversations we have with her on a daily basis. She has been loving this summer weather, soaking up the great outdoors. She loves blowing bubbles, drawing with chalk, going for walks in the stroller and swimming in the pool! 

Bless the Lord, oh my soul, all my inmost being - praise His holy name! 

God's Promises

I have been meditating on this passage the past few weeks:

"I give you thanks, O Lord, with all my heart; I will sing your praises before the gods. I bow before your holy Temple as I worship. I will give thanks to your name for your unfailing love and faithfulness, because your promises are backed by all the honor of your name. When I pray, you answer me; you encourage me by  giving me the strength I need." Psalm 138:1-3 (New Living Translation, Italics mine)

What amazing hope for us to know that His promises are backed by the honor of His name! That means they are true, He can never lie. 

"Growing in the Good News"

Lately the Lord has been speaking to me a lot about His love for me and the need for me to seek Him for who He is. This morning Pastor Randy preached a sermon that confirmed this message to me, and I wanted to share my notes in hopes it will bless your hearts! 

~ We want our spiritual lives to be the equivalent of a healthy, weed-free lawn. But sometimes no matter what we do, those spiritual weeds continue to pop up in our lives. And we try everything - doing this or that - more discipline, etc. to get rid of them. But the problems, issues and struggles seem to remain. Finally we are so tired that we revert to just maintaining our spiritual lives. 

Titus 2:11-14 shows that grace is what teaches us to say no to sin. Paul is motivating natural growth by highlighting the beauty of Christ - not by eliminating sin. 

~ We grow in the good news as our hearts are captivated by the beauty of Christ. When this occurs the affections of our hearts (our desires) are changed. 

~ A heart re-created into desiring what God desires. How? By being captivated by His love. Everyone is drawn to beauty whether it be different forms of music, art, nature or physical beauty. Beauty has an ability to touch our hearts in a way that produces action. 

~ The church tends to shine a spotlight on duty, commitment, sin, ourselves or other people to make us grow. But it doesn't work. When the spotlight is on Christ's beauty (His grace, etc.), then our hearts are enamored. Is it any wonder our hearts are not captivated by the things the church tends to point to?  (persuaded to turn from sin?) Beauty is comparative so people become beauty-shoppers. Christ's beauty is the only one that is beyond compare. 

Reflections of late......

I've been thinking a lot about Christ's love for me lately. It's hard to wrap my mind around. I feel that words like "amazing, awesome and wonderful" fall short of describing His love.

I recently watched the "Hunger Games" for the first time and was very curious to know more. So I read the 3 books. Parts of it are very disturbing and horrific, but what I most came away with was Peetah's selfless, unconditional love for Katniss. Katniss was a little self-centered herself at times, but Peetah from the very beginning would do anything to sacrifice his own life so that Katniss could go home to her family. Granted, there was a time when his mind was poisoned into believing that Katniss was the enemy. But his overall pure-hearted devotion to her captured my full attention.

This brings me back to Christ's love for me. If I can be so enthralled by the love of a fictional character for another fictional character, how much more should the love of Christ capture my heart? I know that any human love is only a shadow of what real love is - God. Now this thought brings me to Luis. How beautiful and sweet is his love for me! His faithful, steadfast and unconditional love for me is by no means perfect, but it definitely is a reflection of Christ's love for me Now I know that Christ's love is the only love that leaves me completely comforted, satisfied and fulfilled. So I must continue to struggle against the pull of this world which tries to get me to fall for anything else that simply cannot satisfy.

Oh that I might know His love more fully!

The next step of our journey!

Luis and I spent all of last year praying for God to open doors and lead us into the next step for us after graduation. We prayed very earnestly about an opportunity for us to return to El Salvador, but never really felt a peace about it. We also were praying and looking into returning to Honduras to be a part of a ministry that is near where we used to live. There never seemed to be an open invitation for us there, we had no way of supporting ourselves, and it just didn’t seem to be the right timing. At the same time, I had been researching about petitioning for a tourist visa for Luis so that we could come visit our family in the U.S. I found out that I do not have the right as an American citizen to petition for a tourist visa, only for a permanent residency. That information opened up a whole new reason to pray! I began to feel a huge desire to come and live here for a time so that Luis could experience my culture and family. It was really hard to make a decision to apply for residency - especially for Luis since he thought that we would be going into ministry right away. We talked and prayed about it and sought counsel from our friends and family. Most everyone told us that it seemed like now was the perfect time for us to work on his papers, since we don't have children or any real commitments yet. Also, it just seemed like such a positive thing for our marriage and future family. Once we made the decision to apply for residency, we were flooded with peace and became more and more excited! The whole process only took 4 and a half months and now Luis is a permanent resident of the U.S. He is free to come and go as he chooses and has the right to be out of country for up to a year without permission. He can work and even apply to become a naturalized citizen right away, if he chooses. His green card lasts for 10 years before he has to renew it, but his status as a permanent resident does not expire unless he changes it to a citizen. 

Now that we are actually here we know that this was God's perfect timing for us to come here and the Lord has already provided for us and opened up new opportunities for us here!   We plan to take this year to work and save as much as possible. Luis wants to become completely adapted into the culture and perfect his English. He started working for my Grandpa at Faull & Son Tool and Die Co. And I started working for my dad at his House Call MD practice, helping with administrative stuff. I’m also going to be driving him around so that he can get more work done during the day. He’s going to be training me as his medical assistant. We are living with my parents for a few months so that we can save a little before moving into our own apartment or town house. Our hope is to find a Hispanic ministry close by where we can get involved. We hope to stay in Ohio at least for five years – maybe longer! But we are open to moving to another State or country, if God clearly leads us and opens up ministry doors. We can see ourselves staying here long term and going into full time ministry with Latinos, just as much as we see ourselves moving away again! We don't know what will happen, but we've learned that God's leading comes in steps, and that we just need to completely trust Him and be willing to go wherever and do His will. We also hope to start a family soon! There is so much more I could say about it all, but for now I will just say how truly grateful and blessed we feel to be here. Something that was never in our plans or imaginations, came about in a way where we can only say, “We want to live completely submitted to God’s purposes for our lives”. May this be our prayer and motivation forever and ever!

Gratitude

"Gratitude is based on the belief that God is painting a picture that will turn out for His glory regardless of our present circumstances." - T.W. Hunt

I've been learning in my Bible study this week that gratitude should be a continuous and permanent attitude of every Christian. We should not be grateful only when God blesses us with the obvious things. The Bible exhorts us to be thankful in every circumstance...this includes the bad circumstances. But as Christians, we can rejoice because God is working in all things for the good of those who love Him and have been called according to His purpose. God's ultimate goal for us is not that we feel happy or have a good time, but to make us like Christ. (Eph.4:15) I made myself a list of discomforts that I am going through right now. And then I thanked God for them because I believe in His unchanging character, I believe that He is always good, and I know that He is working in all things for my good.

My Personal Psalm 23

Something I learned in my Bible study this week was that “Knowing and understanding my personal unique identity before God strengthens my fellowship with Him” – T.W. Hunt. If you are a musician, then maybe you can relate best to God as the Composer or Conductor of your life. If you are a teacher, then maybe God is the Great Teacher or Professor in your life. If you are a doctor, then you can probably relate very well to knowing that God is the Great Physician. David was a shepherd, and understood what it was like to take care of sheep. (Something that most of us know nothing about!) Psalm 23 reflects David’s personal unique identity before God. T.W. Hunt encouraged me to write my own personal Psalm 23 as a prayer to God. At this point in my life, I can relate to God the best knowing that I am his daughter, and He is my Heavenly Father. When I think of God as my Father, I am deeply comforted. My earthly dad was (and is) such a wonderful example of faithfully caring for his family. Much of what I see in my dad I know is being reflected from my Heavenly Father. I really have no reason to fear – for I am in His hands and He cares for me. I can go to Him for anything – He loves to give good gifts to His children. He delights in providing for us and He is fully trustworthy.

My Personal Psalm 23

v. 1 El Shaddai (The Great Bestower of Blessings) is my Heavenly Father

       He takes care of my every need

v. 2 He leads me in trust

       and shows me how to depend on Him

v. 3 He satisfies my heart

       His gentleness instructs me

v. 4 Even when I am anxious and fearful,

       I know that He is caring for me

v. 5 He abundantly provides and

       lavishes on me, His daughter

v. 6 I need not fear the future –

       for my Heavenly Father knows all my needs

My sweet Preacher!

I recently took a spiritual gifts test and it re-confirmed what some of my gifts are. Later Luis took the same test and I loved seeing our differences and how we compliment one another! I scored very high in hospitality, apostle, sharing, and service/help. Luis' highest scores were in words of wisdom, evangelism, faith, teaching and sharing. I have always known that about him - and especially have admired his gift of faith. This is something that I have seen in him from many years ago. As God's children, we should all have faith, but some people are blessed with being gifted with another measure of faith. Also, Luis has really blossomed in his ability to preach/teach over the last year and I have LOVED seeing how God is using him in his spiritual gifts. Taking the test was a good reminder to me to use what God has given me for His glory. Below is a picture of us - Luis is wearing his new tie he got from Christmas (Thanks Mom and Dad!) and he was on his way out to preach a required sermon for one of his classes. (Preaching 3) P.S. And I am wearing an adorable scarf that Sharon gave me because it really has been THAT cold here in Guatemala!!!

I praise the Lord for this time that Luis and I have had in Honduras. It has been filled with family time (on both sides), visiting friends, tutoring a young boy from church daily, sharing about our time in El Salvador, and opportunities for Luis to preach in the local churches. On Sunday the Lord spoke to me through his sermon and I think it's definitely worth blogging about. 

Genesis 6:1-12 

     - Man's wickedness had become so great that God was grieved

1. Yet Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord

2. He was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time 

and he walked with God

Luis challenged us to live as Noah - even though we are surrounded by people who are living godless, wicked lives in the sight of God, we should make the difference. Luis pointed out that Noah's job wasn't to try to convince people to accept Jesus into their hearts, but to announce that there was a flood coming and that the people just needed to get into the boat! He faced ridicule because of his faith in God to build the ark. It definitely wasn't easy for him, yet he walked with God - not just a little while but all the days of his life! Of course the sermon was a lot more detailed and deep, but I just wanted to write the basics of it and share that we are called to live as Noah did among people that are not following after God. Sometimes, we find ourselves in situations where we are the only ones obeying God, but let's not lose heart! Let's just walk with God.

Encouraged

A going away party was held at our house for one of the short-termers the other night and when we got home I ran into some old friends that I didn't expect to see. Deyni is a medical student whom has been such an encourager to me over the years. Rosmery is a girl who has lived with a missionary family here in the past and is now going to school to be a teacher, I believe. The three of us remembered a time we had on the beach together a couple of years ago where we just spoke scripture over each other and prayed for each other. Once again we began to share what the Lord is teaching us at this point in our walks and I just felt so blessed to be with both of them again! The Lord doesn't cease to amaze me by what He is doing in these girls and through them. They both are passionate followers of Jesus Christ and no matter how much time goes by, whenever I see them again they are always ready with a word of encouragement for the race we are running as believers. My only regret of seeing them is that I didn't take a picture of the three of us together! Below are a few pictures of us taken last year. 

Deyni

Rosmery

An MK tea party

Sharon and I hosted a tea party for the lovely MK ladies of the community. The theme was presenting yourself in an excellent fashion - coming from the inward self most of all.  We had cookies and cinnamon rolls, banana bread and hot chocolate. Sharon gave an introduction using the throw away cup, the good old coffee mug and the special occasion tea cup. We should treat ourselves and guard ourselves like the tea cup! Then Amanda led us in a time of games - we did the toilet paper wrap to see who could make the most beautiful gown and then we played the memory game. And then I talked to the girls from 1 Tim. 4:12 - how to be an example in life, speech, faith, love and purity. I also encouraged them to pray with one another, hold each other accountable and encourage one another, since they have such a close-knit community. They are so open and sweet and the conversation just took off from there as they shared their ideas and some struggles. Afterwards three of the girls asked to talk to us about how they can become friends with the Honduran girls here. It was such a special night and Sharon and I used the opportunity to wear our wedding dresses again!

Esmirna

One thing that we have loved about Luis´ internship is the tremendous support shown to us by the local church here, Esmirna. The church has around 239 members and 300 + assistants. One thing that I think God has used to bring spiritual health and growth to the church is the fact that all of the pastors have had the opportunity to go to really good Bible seminaries. (Many of them from SETECA) The church was planted almost 100 years ago.  Portrero Sula, the village that we are living in, has been greatly influenced by the church and is known for its Christian majority. Why in the world are we doing a missions project in an area where the majority are Christians? Well the answer to that has been very exciting for us. Even though Potrero Sula is pretty much a Christian community, the surrounding communities are not. There is a huge Catholic influence with much spiritual need. Esmirna has been very motivated and enthusiastic about reaching out to the surrounding communities. In August the church began to formally go out to evangelize each Saturday. Since Luis´ goals on his internship are to learn from the church and the culture about missions (not so much teach about it), this has been the ideal place for us to learn and grow. We love the church´s passion for missions. Even though this a small village, the church knows and understands the call to missions. They support different missionaries around the world as well as students from SETECA. They are learning that as Christians, everyone has a call to be missionaries. Monday nights are prayer services, so the congregation gets together to pray about specific needs, including missions. We have joined with Esmirna in reaching out to the surrounding communities and what a tremendous blessing it has been for us!

El Salvador

Dear Friends and Family,

 Blessings to you in Christ Jesus! We hope this little update about our adventures in El Salvador will be of encouragement to you.

We would like to share with you that we have been in a village called Potrero Sula, two hours north of San Salvador, for a week now.

On the way here we got stuck in a river (la plancha), then spent the night and shared a wonderful time with the Loredo family and our friend Deyni in Tegucigalpa. We thank the Lord for safe travels and all of your prayers!

It is with much joy that we share with you that our time in this place has already been such a blessing to our lives. Our brothers and sisters in Christ at the church, Esmirna, are very loving, kind and hospitable. They love long visits in their homes (meaning that they like us to come and stay all day long!)

This week we have had the opportunity to visit many homes and have direct contact with the community, observing the culture and getting to know the area. It has been very fascinating for us.

The pastor here that we are working with is doing a great job in the community of establishing relation-ships, teaching, discipling, etc. but the need is still very great. There is much to be done.

We are staying with the pastor and his wife and I am working directly with him. I will be working in three villages surrounding Potrero Sula, where there is no evangelical church and the majority of the people are not Christians. There is a huge number of professing Roman Catholics that I will be sharing with, observing and getting to know.

So far I have had the opportunity to share with the youth at Esmirna about missions and this morning we joined with Esmirna in a time of prayer and fasting. 

Please continue praying for us:

Salu! (This is how the people say adiós here)

Blessings in abundance to all of you!

Luis and Kara Núñez

      

Newsletter

Dear Friends and Family,

We hope that God’s peace and love are surrounding you and that you are filled with joy because of the faithfulness of God in your lives!

As you already know, Kara and I are studying at a Bible Seminary in Guatemala because we feel called to be missionaries in rural places and with Indigenous people. So we have been taking Bible and mission classes each day and learning how to share the gospel in other cultures in a clear and concise way. We feel that Bible preparation is very important on the mission field. And we have discovered that the theory of what we are learning is still far away from putting it into practice, but we understand how important it is to learn to walk out correctly what we are learning.

Every profession, vocation, or preparation, requires a trial period and this time is used to put in practice everything that has been learned in theory. For that reason we would like to share with you that as part of a

Requirement of the seminary, Kara and I will move to a small village in El Salvador for two months. (Oct. 15-Dec. 15)

We have contacted the leadership of a church in this village and they have decided to receive us as interns. The church will be our base of ministry but our focus will be more outward. We will be getting to know the people, observing their culture, practices and beliefs and sharing the gospel as much as we can. Our hearts’ desire is to be able to immerse ourselves in the culture and become part of the people there so that our ministry will be well received.

Why are we sharing this with you? We know that moving to an unknown culture is not easy. In fact it can be very difficult because of cultural shocks in many different ways.  This is why we are motivated to make you part of our journey because we know that you will be praying for us. We would like to ask you to pray for us in the following areas:

Ministry & Personal Requests:

1. That we can take advantage of our time there

2. That God will open the doors for us to minister and learn

3. That God will provide economically everything needed

4. That God will work in our lives through the time with the people

We thank you for your prayers and your love for us and we pray that God bless you richly!

Love in Christ, 
Luis & Kara

Women's Retreat

I just got back from a wonderful women's retreat over the weekend. It was very refreshing! (Although I missed Luis terribly) The theme was, "Victorious Living". Apart from relaxation, delicious food, touring Antigua and winning prizes and girl fellowship, I came away with a very practical way to remember to put on the Armor of God each day. 

This tangible list of what I "put on"  to get ready each day will help me to be thinking of the list from Eph. 6: 

Underarm deodorant: Each day when i put on my protective deodorant I will be reminded to be putting on the armor of God. 

Pants/Belt: Belt of Truth - Combat lies/doubts by BELIEVING every word in the Bible

Bra: Breastplate of Righteousness - It's the righteousness of Jesus that will protect my heart, not my own righteousness

Shoes: Feet readied with the gospel of peace - walk in God's peace throughout the day. Peace with God, peace with others and peace with myself.

Make-up w/ SPF: Shield of Faith - Soak in Word of God so I can extinguish fiery darts of the the enemy

Fixing Hair: Helmet of Salvation - walk in knowing I am His

The Bible: Sword of the Spirit to attack lies, doubts, discouragement, feelings, etc.

He can change my heart

I have really been struggling with a phobia of worms. So much so that instead of feeling overwhelmingly grateful that someone gave away a truckload of vegetables to all the families at school, all I could think of was that these veggies were probably crawling with worms. I immediately started complaining when I walked in the kitchen and saw a huge amount of freshly picked vegetables in the sink. Luis just gave me "the look" and I decided I better be quiet. A few minutes later he started to wash them. I finally worked up the courage to go in there and watch him. Then slowly I began to feel the sink with water and clorox to soak them. I checked every single inch of every piece of vegetable (at a distance) to make sure nothing was hiding. I complained a little more and Luis was very patient with me. After awhile I started feeling really guilty for my attitude. I asked God to help me get over my fear and I put my apron on, and started listening to Chris Tomlin, "Indescribable". Then I realized how ungrateful I was being. But there is a part in the song that says, "You know my heart, yet you love me the same". I praise the Lord that He loves me even though he knows the ugliness of my heart. I knew that I really didn't deserve such a wonderful blessing after my snobbish attitude, yet the Lord delights to change my heart when I am willing. Later, after I was sure that everything was clean, I spent over an hour chopping up carrots, green beans, broccoli and potatoes to freeze. I slowly began to feel very grateful and blessed by His wonderful provision. 

JOY

I love talking about joy. I think because I have been most joyful in my life when I have been stripped of everything dear to me. It's amazing to me to remember how joyful I was when all of my circumstances were hard. I truly fell in love with Jesus in that time and I realized that He is really all I need to be happy.

This week we have been meditating on different passages about joy for one of our classes (Spiritual Life). This morning in class my friend, Anahi, raised her hand to share this testimony: (paraphrased in my own words and written with her permission) 

"After reading Habakkuk 3:17-19 I personalized it for myself. Even if David and I are short on money and food, I decide to be joyful in the Lord. I prayed that God would truly make this a reality in my life. But I knew that meant that He would probably allow me to go through trials in this area. Sure enough, last night we were robbed about a block away in the store (pulperia). All they took was about 30 quetzales (less than 5 dollars) and our inexpensive cell phone. But I can truly say that I am joyful because, whoever did this must need much more than we do - we really are doing alright."

Anahi started to cry as she shared her story and I was really touched by her testimony. I began thinking about all the people we know who have been robbed and assaulted here weekly. Jewelry has literally been torn off of girls that I know. Instead of feeling sorry for myself for living in such a violent place, I realized that I need to be joyful and praise God for His continual protection. I, unlike the people here who do these crimes, have a reason to be joyful - my hope and salvation is in my Lord. But they do not have the same hope. They are so lost and they need Jesus. 

It really touched me to read about the conditions that the apostle Paul probably had to live in when he was in prison. I am such a wimp when it comes to cold weather. But as Paul withstood the cold, nakedness, hunger, and terrible conditions of the prison, he wrote of joy in his letters. Not to mention all that Jesus went through joyfully for my salvation. 

Joy. I love that word...I especially love when I am fully living it out. I want to choose joy every day like Habakkuk did, no matter what I'm going through.

Back to Radical Discipleship

This week the seminary is hosting a huge missionary conference with speakers and people from all over the world. The theme is "Crossing New Borders - The Great Commission".

My heart is stirring within me from a few specific topics that have really touched me in the conference. Luis and I have been taking notes during each session and I just feel like I can't write fast enough to record everything I want to remember!!

The first thing that I want to share that is heavy on my heart is this:

                1. The commandment in Matt. 28:19-20 says to "Go and Make Disciples"
                   * The commandment doesn't say to go and "evangelize" or go and "plant churches". (Jesus said                that HE would build the church)
                   * The second part of the commandment says, "Teaching them to obey all that I (Christ) have taught you. Part of this means that as we disciple others, we need to teach them to also GO and MAKE DISCIPLES.
                   * This commandment is for THE WHOLE CHURCH - not just those people that we call
                    "missionaries"


The second thing from that I want to share is something that I wish we would see more of. I hope that God will use Luis and I in this area. There is so much information on this topic that I filled 8 full pages of notes. And I still wasn't satisfied after that. I want to know more. I asked the speaker (Dr. Joshua Bogunjoko from Nigeria) to send me his notes and he suggested that we talk more over lunch tomorrow. Luis and I couldn't stop talking after that session about what the speaker said and how we've seen it applied in our lives.

                       2. How to send missionaries from the context of poverty.

ERRR...there's so much to say and learn about this that I don't even know how to begin condensing it into important points that I want to share. But I guess the first thing that I will say is a quote from Dr. Bogunjoko.
"The question: How to send missionaries from a context of poverty is an acknowledgement that missionary sending has been heavily influenced by financial means. The problem of missions from Rich to Poor as against Biblical mission from followers of Jesus Christ to the lost is a pervasive influence of money  at the expense of deep biblical reflection."

We have all seen this played out in some way or another. Dr. Bogunjoko says that not everything done from a context of wealth is wrong. And not everything done from a context of poverty is right. There has to be a balance. But what about the "missionaries" that begin a project in a third world country - if it advances then they slowly establish relationships with the "nationals". If it fails then so many of them go back to their home country and the "nationals" never hear from them again. There was never a relationship established, and discipleship didn't exist. Since no one was discipled, no one is obeying the command to make disciples. Thankfully this is not always the case. This is just the worst of the cases.

What saddens me deeply is that the missionary culture of today uses the words, "missionaries" and "nationals". Jesus didn't call the people "nationals". He called them "Brethen".

OOOHH...there are so many other things said that I could spend all day writing them down!!! Why is it that someone coming from a rich country (Canada for example) could easily go to the U.S. to raise support - No problem. But if you are from Costa Rica and go to the U.S. to raise support then you are looked upon as "dependent".

Exploring a way forward: We need to take ownership of the mandate to "Make Disciples" and change the culture, starting with discipleship in the church. For those who don't have money - there needs to be a communal approach and concept of training, where a number of churches or mission agencies come together to train their missionaries in the community.  There is the non-cash approach. I don't have money but I raise chickens and I want to support you in that way. I don't have cash but I do have this cow....etc. etc. the cooperative approach - prayer. The direct transfer relationship based approach. And the mediator approach. In the west the people are used to going from church to church to raise support to be sent out as missionaries. Dr. Bogunjoko says that in his context of Nigeria their approach seems to be far more affective. It is the mediator approach. Someone that knows your work goes to speak for you ...there is more credibility that way.

Ultimately poverty needs to be defined as a lack of relationship with Jesus Christ - not as a lack of finances. The worst kind of poverty is the absence of Shalom.

AND the ultimate example of serving as a missionary out of the context of poverty was the great missionary Himself, our Lord Jesus Christ. He could have had mansions and riches on earth but instead He chose to have no place to lay His head.

Anways this may sound like blah blah blah to you....I'm sorry if it does!!! But I am learning here...and one of the best ways for me to learn is to immediately share it with others. So comments are appreciated. There is so much I left out and don't have time to go into - things that we talked about from the Bible - but if you have any thoughts on "sending out missionaries from the context of poverty" or thoughts on changing our view of a "missionary" please share them with me!

A Second Chance...

I am so grateful that God gives us second chances and new opportunities in life. If He didn't, then I wouldn't have been given a second chance to play the violin!

I have been praying for a violin for months and desiring to play again, after I foolishly quit when I was 13ish. I didn't value the violin lessons my parents made me take for 7 years when I was little. I would give anything to go back and realize at the time what a gift it was! But thankfully the Lord is gracious to His kids, and today He answered my prayers for a violin!

I had told my piano professor that I play violin and he asked me to play in a concert at the end of next month. Well, I told him that I would love to but I didn't have a violin! His brother happened to have one that he is selling (for just over $50 - which is an incredible price!) So he brought it to me to use for the concert and if I like it to buy it!

It isn't the best quality violin but I think it has a pretty good sound. It took me a little while to tune it because the pegs wouldn't stay in place!! And at first I didn't think I would be able to use it but then I started praying again - and I decided to thank and praise God for answering my prayers! And then when I tried tuning it again the pegs stayed and I started playing and it sounded beautiful.

I am amazed that I spent over an hour practicing and messing around on it! Practicing for 20 minutes used to feel like torture to me. I was also amazed that I remembered a lot of the Vivaldi song I used to play. (Thank God for the suzuki method!)

Well it is funny because I started remembering all the things I hated about the violin when I was little. First of all I hated that I had to cut my nails. Well today I went running to grab the nail clipper! Also I hated getting the violin out of the case and "setting it up" (how lazy was I?) I used to think that if only I could leave the violin all set up on the table then I would be more inclined to want to practice - just grabbing it on the way by. Another thing that I hated is that my hands would get so sweaty when I practiced! Well that problem still exists today - but now I really don't care since I am so happy to play again. Also I hated keeping it on my shoulder cause I would get so tired and I wished that I could sit down while I practiced. Well my shoulder did hurt after awhile today, but it was totally worth it! And it feels good to have my fingers a little swollen after playing.

Oh how I love the Lord and His goodness to me! He knows what I need WAY better than I know myself. And His perfect plan ALWAYS prevails...no matter how foolish I am. I am so thankful that my foolishness never stops Him from carrying out His purposes for me in my life.

Joy in ALL circumstances

Last night I attended "Entre Amigas" (Between Friends), a ministry to all the married women of SETECA. It is a wonderful group of fellowship, encouragement and worship and small groups held once a month. (and one of my highlights of being here)

A very hilarious, down to earth woman from Argentina gave a talk about contentment. She shared a lot about when she first moved to Guatemala ten years ago with her family and how she lost her joy when they weren't able to bring basic stuff with them because of the weight. (her good cooking pans, sheets, and household items that made her feel comfortable)Not only that, but she also struggled with the new culture, the food and items she couldn't get here, and tight accommodations.

It reminded me a lot about one of the biggest lessons I've ever had to learn. When I went to RAD in 2006, I discovered that my happiness depended very much on my circumstances. It was so freeing for me to learn how to be joyful in the hardest, most heart-wrenching and uncomfortable circumstances.

That doesn't mean I am always joyful in every single circumstance. But last night was such a good reminder for me to evaluate my attitude and my joy.

Am I really grateful when God allows circumstances in my life that I don't like? What about those areas that I dislike in my husband? Do I give thanks to God for them and ask Him to change my husband according to HIS will, not my own? Or do I pout and complain and inwardly huff and puff? What about the times I am homesick and upset? Do I praise God that He is my home? How about that difficult person who pushes my buttons? Do I praise God for bringing this person into my life to help me grow in my character? What about when I am sick? Do I moan and groan and wonder, "why in the world is this happening to ME of all people?" Does my husband see me as joyful and content, or as the wife who just can't be happy no matter what?

Well, there are so many other little circumstances that I tend to inwardly complain and mumble about. I say, "ERRRR! WHY ME?" instead of, "THANK YOU,LORD! You are so good! I know that THIS trial is for my good...to grow me and make me more into your image."

It's so good to take some time to do some soul-digging and to challenge myself!! I really want people to see me as joyful and content in all circumstances. Strip away all my fancy kitchen utensils.....my beautiful clothes and accessories and my cozy little apartment. Make me eat the same food EVERY SINGLE DAY...NO VARIETY. Would I be content? Would I praise God still? Make my husband into a mean old grumpy, crabby man. Would I love him unconditionally and thank the Lord for testing my character?? Hmm....sometimes I think that my marriage is all about ME and MY happiness.

It really helps my attitude to know the truth: that this life is NOT about me.

Whatever it is that we allow to steal our joy....It's NOT WORTH IT!

I really desire to grow more in this area - to praise God in every circumstance and have a continuous attitude of thankfulness.